Political Philosophy and Major Theme Machiavelli Essay

Machiavelli had a true and staying love for Florence. He wanted to do Florence great and besides happen himself a occupation. as he lost his when the Medici household came into power. He dedicated his book on political scientific discipline. The Prince. to Lorenzo Medici in the hopes that Lorenzo would be impressed and offer him a occupation. However. Lorenzo ignored the book and Machiavelli. The Prince is a didactic scrutiny of political power. how to accomplish it. keep it. and spread out it. Machiavelli does non take into consideration what is morally right. or amoral. merely what is utile and useless.

The book is more like a proficient manual. and proficient manuals merely province the facts. The book defines what turns a mere adult male into a great swayer and what turns a great swayer into a mere adult male. Machiavelli’s book of political relations is alone because it is so realistic. He does non put adult male in a false Utopia where adult male live in ageless peace and harmoniousness. everyone making good to one another for the good of the public whole. Rather. he writes a manual where there are political struggles and tensenesss. Machiavelli writes how a prince should cover with these struggles and tensenesss.

He condones inhuman treatment. penalty. faith. wagess. compassion. and unity to accomplish power. Whatever means to accomplish the terminal. QUESTIONS 2. Discuss Machiavelli’s “heroes” . Select one and discourse the traits that he finds admirable in that individual. Be specific. Machiavelli’s heroes are Moses. Cyrus. Romulus and Theseus. They all formed civilisations. When Machiavelli negotiations about his heroes he is talking of how to get a princedom. As Isiah Berlin says in his essay. Machiavelli admired these heroes because they were exalted. tough. and tough plenty to utilize ferociousness against the few. to assist the public good of the princedom.

He particularly admired Moses because he was worthy to speak to God. Moses had the chance to make a new civilisation with the Hebrewss because they were being treated severely by the Pharaoh. Therefore. Moses took advantage of their discontent with their new maestro and led them in a rebellion. Finally making a new civilisation. Machiavelli admired Moses because of his strength of character that carried him through the hard problem of deriving power. 3. Discuss Machiavelli’s sentiments on the utilizations of inhuman treatment to carry through certain ends.

The Prince is about the ways to accomplish political power. with no penchant for the manner in which it is achieved. Machiavelli does non recommend unneeded inhuman treatment. His book is merely approximately how to obtain and maintain a princedom. Machiavelli believes that inhuman treatment is sometimes necessary to get or/and maintain political power. Machiavelli recognized that in the clip he lived a political swayer would hold to utilize inhuman treatment. he writes. “The new prince. above all princes. can non perchance avoid the name of cruelty” .

He besides states in Chapter VIII that inhuman treatment may be utile sometimes in accomplishing certain terminals. but it would convey no glorification. 1. What does Machiavelli believe of “the people” in the class of human history? Machiavelli refers to “the people” as “the masses” . tonss of times. He realizes that “the people” are a dominant force in political relations. whether it is a democracy or a democracy. When a princedom is added to an already established land. he writes that the imposts must be the same between the two and that no new revenue enhancements or Torahs should be enacted.

To make so would do the people to revolt and the late acquired princedom would be in hazard. Machiavelli realizes a prince can non maintain political power if his people hate him. A hostile population may abandon him or turn against him when hostile baronial onslaught. so the prince will lose the land. Machievelli besides believed that a prince may “ do an illustration of a really few” be executing of terrible penalty. but that allowing the population conveying upset among themselves was bad for the whole community. Therefore. Machiavelli was wary of “mob rule” .

Machiavelli realizes that “the people” have to be comparatively happy for a princedom to be healthy. 4. In general. what is Machiavelli stating his “Prince” with respect to the usage of power? Machiavelli’s full book is about power. How to accomplish a princedom with power. Power over “the people” with inhuman treatment ( or penalty ) ; power over other princes with fraudulence or a bigger ground forces or powerful friends ; power over the ground forces with inhuman treatment and/or money. He speaks of control over captured metropoliss by spliting them into cabals. demilitarizing the people or organizing belligerencies among the people.

All of these things achieve power. A prince must besides be more powerful than his counsellors. hearing and reaping cognition but doing his ain determinations ; because a weak prince will make whatever his counsellors tell him and so his counsellors will take over the princedom. EVALUATION OF BOOK I think this is one of the most interesting books I’ve read in a piece. It’s dry. realistic. terse. and to the point. It’s besides really easy to read ( I was cheerily surprised ) . All of the historical intensions are particularly interesting.

I read that Hitler. Mussolini. and Lenin found Machiavelli valuable reading ; I would wish to dig more into that one! ! In the Renaissance faith and acquisition were get downing to be thought of as separate and Machiavelli was a adult male of his clip. His book was wholly didactic and did non hold a hint of faith. He spoke of inhuman treatment and fraudulence in prosaic tones and maintain his book purely a manual. with no opinions. In our modern clip. we have to spot his book in the same mode that he wrote it. If we do non. we will non understand what he was composing.